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Monday, 21 September 2015

Atavismo - 'Desintegración' (Album Review)

By: Victor Van Ommen

Album Type: Full Length

Date Released: 16/06/2015

Label: Temple of Torturous (Vinyl Only)

Atavismo ‘s “Desintegración” is a late night dip in the AlboranSea. Gentle, swirling sound effects ease things in, matching the sound and feel of waves lapping onto the shore. Overall they are a good example of what the wonderful world of psychedelia has to offer.

‘Desintegración’ CD//DD//LP track listing:

1. Blazava2. Kraken3. Oceánica4. Meeh

Atavismo is:

Pot | guitar, synthPow | drumsMatt | bass

The Review:

Atavismo ‘s “Desintegración” is a late night dip in the AlboranSea. Gentle, swirling sound effects ease things in, matching the sound and feel of waves lapping onto the shore inviting the local skinny dippers to dive in. It’s a sensual affair down by the beach with a bonfire and a clear night sky filled with stars. Atavismo are in no hurry, allowing “Blazava” to take its time to unfold. It hits its stride once the notes on the guitar gently make their way up the fret board, beckoning the tom-heavy percussion to bring this song to a new chapter. This groove is built upon by interplay of electric and steel-string acoustic guitars that playfully twist around each other like two new lovers locking eyes for the first time. That’s right; this is not a heavy record. This is a serene psychedelic rock record made in the southern Spanish town of Malaga that paints a picture of a couple getting lost in each other.

The most prevalent influence on the band’s sound is the picture painted above. Each song builds on this setting in its own way. The first half of “Kraken” is playful, making good use of – I’m assuming – the Farfissa to get things going. A simple chord progression and an even simpler song structure makes way for the mind and desires to wander. Somehow, though, beneath the surface of this steady simplicity lies a particular tension; a moment of will they or won’t they. This question is addressed in the latter half of the song when Atavisimo erupts into a controlled jam, and the answer is yes, they will.

“Oceánica” follows “Kraken” beautifully with lush vocal harmonies and sparse instrumentation. This is the afterglow, that moment that the couple who met in “Blazava” and had their moment in “Kraken” are laying on the beach staring at the stars and hearing the crackle of the bonfire next to them. The softness of “Oceánica” has no grip on the present; it’s more of an interlude than a song. Its thick bass mimics the dull sound of being under water and the twist of the guitar passage moves slow like undercurrents. The listener will definitely be drifted away in this piece until the final three minutes when they are brought back, leading in “Meeh” to close things out. The dreamy vocals and gentle percussion in this one is very much a second wind, never quite breaking out into full-fledged psych until the final 40 seconds. As a song, it’s not particularly eventful but the hypnotic roll invites the mind and body to wander which is what psychedelic music is all about. That’s not to say that Atavismo is genre defining but they are a good example of what the wonderful world of psychedelia has to offer.

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